My Part of the Story: Exploring Identity in the United States
Get the print or PDF version of our unit designed to launch a course on US history, literature, or civics through an investigation of identity.
![Cover of "My Part of the Story."](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/MyPartoftheStory_cvr.png?h=0a704eec&itok=6Rmy52as)
Teaching Enrique's Journey
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This guide provides activities and discussion questions for leading your students through a six-week reading of Enrique's Journey that explores themes of identity, belonging, and choices.
![Cropped Enriques Journey Cover](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Enriques_Journey_card.jpeg?h=24afd704&itok=mdxEup0d)
Common Core Writing Prompts and Strategies: The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy
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This resource guides students through a deep exploration of the pivotal era of American history when a nation divided by slavery and war was challenged to rebuild.
The Reconstruction Era and the Fragility of Democracy
This resource guides students through a deep exploration of the pivotal era of American history when a nation divided by slavery and war was challenged to rebuild.
![Book cover of American flag with faces over it.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/Reconstruction_cover_large.jpg?h=51bee232&itok=yY8xN3AK)
We Wanted to Be Treated as Men
Elmore Nickleberry and Taylor Rogers, two former sanitation workers from Memphis, share their memories of the events leading up to the 1968 sanitation strike, as well as their participation in the strike itself.
![Photo of Martin Luther King, Jr. marching arm in arm with a crowd of men participating in the 1968 Memphis Sanitation Worker's Strike.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/8885_1preview.jpg?h=2dd09070&itok=h0YSS1ZO)
Please Ring the Bell for Us
This cartoon, by Francis Knott for the Dallas Morning News, was published on July 7, 1939. It accompanied an editorial that described admitting refugee children to the United States as an “act of simple humanity."
![Children labeled "refugees" try to get into a door marked "US" as they look to a man labeled "Congress" for help.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/13_PleaseRingBell_Medium_res.jpg?h=870af43d&itok=7G_kpstt)
Political Polarization in the United States
This Explainer defines the term political polarization and provides information on how it impacts US politics and society.
![Abstract red, white, and blue painting with thick brush strokes.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/PoliticalPolarization_full-res.jpg?h=5eef411c&itok=dyNgzenB)
Fostering Civil Discourse: How Do We Talk About Issues That Matter?
The ideas and tools in this guide will help you prepare students to engage in reflective conversations on topics that matter.
![Student art on the topic of "we choose"](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-06/we_chose_ctp_344330005_o.jpg?h=c6d0d1c4&itok=r8HMDWBE)
David M. Kennedy: "Twoness”
In this film clip from American Creed, historian David Kennedy discusses the complexity of American identity.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1344.jpg)
Big Paper Example
In a Big Paper activity, students respond silently to a text excerpt or image by writing their comments on a shared paper.
![A text quotation taped on a large piece of paper with student feedback written in markers.](/sites/default/files/styles/dynamic_stack_296_1x/public/2022-08/Big_Paper_Example.jpg?h=481317ef&itok=oivQYEYv)
Using Journals at the Beginning and End of a Lesson
In this classroom video, a high school history teacher uses journals with his students both at the beginning and end of a lesson on Reconstruction.
![](/sites/default/files/brightcove/videos/images/posters/image_1476.jpg)